FISHING INDUSTRY OF THE GREAT LAKES 567 



SUCKERS 



Suckers ranked fourth in quantity among the fish of this lake in 1922, 

 and though they have maintained their relative position in the fishery, 

 as shown by previous censuses, the fishermen generally concede that 

 they are less abundant than formerly. They are caught chiefly in 

 traps, but also to some extent in gill nets. The white sucker is the 

 principal species marketed, though the sturgeon-nose is sold to 

 a greater extent here than in any of the other upper-lake regions. 

 A few suckers are taken everywhere, but the bulk of the catch origi- 

 nates in Green Bay, with the next largest quantity from Grand 

 Traverse Bay. Most of the catch is now sold fresh, but in 1885 it 

 was chiefly salted. There is no closed season for suckers and none 

 are propagated. 



STURGEON 



The sturgeon is now practically exterminated and claims mention 

 only because of the important position it once held in the fisheries. 

 Prior to about 1875 these fish were either drawn onto the beaches or 

 else fatally wounded and released in the lake when taken in the 

 pound nets, and immense numbers are said to have been destroyed 

 in this way. By 1880 sturgeon had a market value, and the catch 

 of this species on the lake in that year amounted to nearly 4,000,000 

 pounds. In 1890 the output had fallen to less than 1,000,000 pounds, 

 and thereafter the decline was rapid. Except in Wisconsin, where 

 there has been a closed season since 1915, sturgeon may still be taken 

 at any time, and in certain waters there are not even size limits to 

 protect the immature. No sturgeon are propagated. 



OTHER INDIGENOUS SPECIES 



All the species of fish native to the basin occur in Lake Michigan 

 and are marketed. In 1922 there were taken more than 1,000,000 

 pounds of fish other than those mentioned above, most of which 

 were produced in Green Bay. 



INTRODUCED SPECIES 



CARP 



The carp has gained a foothold in Lake Michigan and is to be found 

 almost everywhere. It is important in the fisheries only in Green 

 Bay, where 742,000 pounds were marketed in 1922. 



STEELHEAD TROUT 



The steelhead is likewise established in the lake and spawns 

 t abundantly in several of the larger streams emptying into it, and 

 probably also on the beaches. It is important in the commercial 

 fisheries along the Indiana shore only, but there are ports on other 

 shores where it could be taken in commercial quantities if the law 

 permitted. 



